MOBAcademy
by pwross
Summary: Video game high schools have taken a firm hold across the globe twenty-three years after the historic events at VGHS. Nile, aka InDeNile, is recruited to MOBAcademy after grinding through solo queues in the newest MOBA. He meets a number of VGHS veterans along with their children. Nile quickly learns MOBAcademy isn't all fun and games.
1. Acceptance

_Hey all. Find below an original story based in the VGHS universe taking place 23 years after the series finale. I'll be introducing a few original characters as well as revisiting those from the show. Enjoy._

* * *

><p>Nile knew he should be sleeping. School started in two hours, but he had to get another round in if he wanted a shot at the top of the ladder. The double-platinum tier was within his grasp.<p>

He took a deep breath, pounded his fist into his palm, and jumped into the solo ranked queue.

The dim light from his monitor was fading against the rising sunlight. It was just another Tuesday morning for Nile. He was different from the other kids at school. Sure, they loved video games, but to Nile this game was the most important thing in his life. It was his ticket out of the suburbs, and normal high school, to get a shot at doing what he loved for the rest of his life.

His game of choice was Goliath Rally Rampage, abbreviated GRR, and shouted "GRRRRR" on live-streams. It was the latest, and in his opinion greatest, MOBA to hit the internet. Game play exploded with hyper-stylized animations as mechanical giants crushed each other in urban landscapes.

"FLAWLESS RAMPAGE!"

The words flashed across Nile's monitor after he secured his fifth kill in a row. It would have boomed out of his speakers accompanied by the screech of a fighter jet, but he played on mute.

Nile moved his mouse and unleashed a flurry of clicks, urging his goliath to move faster and capitalize on the team's momentum. He felt a familiar flutter in his chest. The win was within reach if his team could stay focused.

"You Have Been Compromised"

Nile slammed his hands against his desk. He waited for the sixteen second respawn timer to tick down and watched his anonymous teammates defend against a refreshed enemy team.

"Suck it InDeNile" his opponent taunted in the chat.

His opponent was piloting S1LENT K1LLER, a goliath capable of stealthing while standing still. Nile had been careless and forgot to drop a radar beacon which would have revealed the surrounding area. The kill no doubt gave the other team a substantial gold bonus.

He purchased a temporary vision buff and increased the capacity of his energy core, granting him more resources for abilities. Nile pressed down the top lane towards the enemy fortification while his team engaged in the middle lane.

RUMBLE P4CK was his goliath of choice. It had two massive power gauntlets which powered up every time he landed an ability or goliath kill. Countless online videos drew Nile to the up-close-and-personal style of play. Many of the ranged goliaths had longer recharges for their abilities, allowing him to get close and land a flurry of punches.

Nile activated his W ability, "Power to the Fists", sacrificing a portion of his shields for increased damage. He clicked furiously on the enemy's core sentry tower. His eyes darted between the respawn counters and health of the tower.

One of his opponents respawned before Nile could down the tower. It was N4STY CH0MP, a shark-like goliath capable of firing rockets and rending opposing goliaths with its teeth.

Nile evaded being shredded by the shark's ultimate and returned with a "Best Fist Forward". His attack made contact and he followed up with an attempt at his own ultimate. RUMBLE P4CK grappled the other goliath and smashed its head between the gauntlets in an explosion of sparks. It was enough damage to dispose of his foe.

The tower went down soon after and his team pushed into the fortification to finish off the enemy's central command.

"SPARKLING VICTORY!"

Nile left the post-game chat amid the messages of "GG" and "xxKittySwirlxx is a noob". He had enough time to catch an hour of sleep before his mom would come in to wake him up. Six more points and he would secure double-platinum for the rest of season one.

"Nile, time to get up for school," his mom called from the hallway.

He groaned and rolled over to grab his phone from the nightstand. There was a notification for one unread email.

His mom came in, "get up or you'll be chasing after the bus," she said. She flung open the roller shades on both of his windows and flooded the room with sunlight.

Nile squinted as he tried to read the new email.

It was from Christine Calhoun. The dean of MOBAcademy.

Nile rubbed his eyes and focused on the message.

_InDeNile,_

_Congratulations. At __the insistence of_ _the faculty, I am informing you of your recruitment to MOBAcademy. You __were selected based_ _on your performance in Goliath Rally Rampage and nominated by one of our instructors._

_Please contact our Admissions Office, not me, at your earliest convenience to enroll._

_Sincerely__,_

_Christine Calhoun_

His dreams were beginning. All of his hard work and countless nights without sleep paid off.

"Mom," Nile said, "I'm not taking the bus today."

Back when video game training institutions were introduced it was considered controversial to transfer a student into one from a "normal" high school. The stigma associated with video game schools faded once eSports grew in popularity. Within twenty years, every state and country with a fast internet connection had a dedicated gaming school.

Nile had read everything he could about Dean Christine Calhoun, and the school, when he dedicated himself to becoming the best GRR player. He was redirected to her office by one of the admissions officers upon arrival.

Christine Calhoun was the dean of MOBAcademy, and daughter of the famous dean of VGHS. Her father had fought for his school and made history twenty-three years ago when they defeated the Napalm Energy Drink Company. Christine had already built a legacy of her own: she was the youngest dean of any private school, and the first video game institution dedicated to MOBAs.

The floor was poured concrete, and all of the external walls were glass. Christine could watch over the students milling in the courtyard from her vantage point. Almost all of the furnishings were made of glass or polished steel.

Nile took two steps past the doorway and stared at Christine. He stayed locked in place, afraid he might break anything he touched. She called for him to take a seat.

"I'm told you're one of the most dedicated players in," she made a few clicks, "Goliath Rally Rampage."

"Well, I'm almost double - " Nile started.

"Let's get this clear, Nile. Just because you're good at some hot new game, doesn't mean you're cut out for MOBAcademy," Christine said. She pushed her monitor aside and leaned forward.

Nile leaned back. All the reading he had done was useless for a face-to-face meeting. Up close, Christine was intimidating. "Yes, ma'am."

"Sometimes I'm not sure why we have an admissions process if we keep plucking newbs out of ranked queues and throwing them into classrooms," she said. Christine took a moment to cool her temper and continued, "Students here are expected to be more than gamers; they're members of a community. My father hated almost every single one of his students, and rightfully so, most of them were brats. But he told me once in a while you come across a student whose heart is in it for all the right reasons."

"Dean Calhoun, it's been my dream to attend MOBAcademy. I won't screw it up," Nile said.

"I have a policy for all of our recruits here. You have to get yourself a spot on either the varsity or junior varsity team by the end of the season, attend all of your classes, and secure a position on some extracurricular executive board," she said.

Nile nodded. It sounded like a lot to take on as a new student, but he would do anything to graduate from the school. Dismissal meant all the time he spent grinding in the solo queues would be worthless. He just had to dedicate himself, focus all the strength he could muster, and overcome any obstacle in his path.

"Get down to orientation," Christine said, "and remember, it's all about your lane."

Orientation was held in the courtyard. The office of admissions set up a booth to register for student IDs and another providing information on the required courses. Other booths scattered over the pavers were set up by student groups to recruit freshmen.

Nile registered for his ID and perused the booths advertizing different clubs. None of them were compelling: book club, poetry jam, bible study. But he saw someone he recognized, from online, at the Video Game Culture and Design booth.

"You're Lee Wong, right?" Nile asked.

He looked just like Lee from the pictures Nile had seen. Same mix of features rare for someone of his background. Straight black hair, green eyes, and a bone structure suited for a western european.

"Uh, yeah. Have we met before?" Lee asked. He looked down at the ID card hanging from Nile's neck and said, "oh, you're new here. Want to join Video Game Culture and Design?"

"Maybe. I didn't know you're a student here," Nile said.

"Yeah, my parents said I should go to a video game school. They _never_ stop talking about how great it was at VGHS," Lee said.

Leland Wong was the son of the most beloved industry executives: Ki Swan and Ted Wong. Their studio had released GRR, a cat racing game, a hybrid FPS/Platformer, and something about hyper-intelligent trees. Lee was involved in creating a few of the goliaths in GRR. In fact, he had designed RUMBLE P4CK.

Nile picked up one of the flyers on Lee's table. A connection with Lee meant he could gain insight on perfecting his playstyle and maybe get a spot on the board of the club. There was even a chance he might get to meet Lee's parents.

"So, when do you guys meet?" Nile asked.

"Video Game Culture and Design club meets every Wednesday at seven. We're there," Lee said and pointed at a building across the courtyard, "in Nexus Tower."

"Hail, son of the creators," someone passing the boot shouted. It was common in GRR forums to "hail the creators" whenever a new goliath or feature was released.

"You don't even know how to play, Lazer," Lee shouted back.

"You really need to think about buffing your comebacks, Leland. See you lazer," he said and walked off.

"Just because I'm not a recruit doesn't mean he's better than me," Lee said.

Nile racked his brain looking for the right thing to say. He had one friend from back home, and they talked about gaming. His experience dealing with other people's problems was minimal. If he let any more time pass, Nile would miss his chance to make a good impression on Lee and things would end up being awkward.

"Tell me about it. Who are they to tell us how to have fun?" Nile said. He lied because it had worked for him in the past.

Lee spun back to Nile, and his eyes lit up. "That's just like what my mom says. Video games are meant to be played, not won."


	2. Papers, Please

_Another chapter. The story shifts to Lee's point of view. Enjoy._

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><p>"Totally," Nile said. "Wednesday at seven, right?"<p>

Few students shared Lee's passion for video games, beyond, well, games. Enthusiasts' lives revolved around their favorite games. Observing the reactions in the student body to each GRR update was fascinating. He held Video Game Culture and Design club on Wednesdays so they could discuss the impact of Tuesday patches. Gaining a fresh voice in the discussion was an exciting opportunity.

Lee smiled and stood up. "Dude, I need to hug you right now."

"Uh, sure, I guess," Nile responded. They leaned across the signup table and hugged.

Lee shared his dad's animated emotional expression. The grin was still plastered on his face after Nile left to explore other booths.

"What're you smiling about, creep?" Lazer had made his way back around to Lee's booth. His hands slammed down on the edge of the table.

The shock knocked a few papers onto the ground. Lee snatched them up before the wind could sweep them away. He stood up and faced Lazer.

"Don't you have any friends to annoy?" Lee asked.

"Still haven't put any points in comebacks, huh Leland?" Lazer said.

"You can't answer a question with another question. That's madness," Lee nearly shouted.

"Is that what it is, madness?" Lazer asked with a smirk.

Before he could craft a reply, or explode from frustration, Lee's phone started ringing. The title song from NES game _Mother_ echoed through the courtyard. "Get out of here, my mom's calling," Lee said.

Lazer left, but not before tipping over the posterboard on Lee's table.

A call from his mom made any day a little bit better. Lee felt comfortable on his own at school, but talking to his parents was a respite from school drama. He could hear the smile in her voice when she answered the call.

"How's everything going sweetie?" his mom asked.

"Good so far. A few kids signed up for the club today."

"That's great. It's important to get involved in other things, make friends. I wish I had joined a club at VGHS," she started.

"But let me guess, you were too busy being class president?" Lee interjected.

"Don't mock my achievements, we slaved away two floors underground inhaling chalk dust for days."

"I know mom, I played _Sub-Basement_ when I was six," Lee said. "How's dad, and the house?"

"Well I haven't seen either in two days, which reminds me," she replied and muttered something else into the phone.

"Mom? Hello, focus, why did you call?"

"Ah yes, right, I called my son. It's to remind you we're releasing Rally Rampage version 1.96 this month," she said.

Lee sighed and said, "yeah, I know mom. My design presentation is almost done."

"If you want to be creative director on this game, we need to know you mean it," she said. "Alright Lee, I have to go before the janitor catched me under the conference room table again. I love you."

"Bye mom, love you too."

The courtyard was devoid of freshmen. Other upperclassmen packed up the materials for their booths and headed back into the school. Lee took his sign down and stuffed the signup sheets into his backpack. He would have to meet with the club's secretary, Sweets, so she could send out reminder emails.

Lee kept an upbeat demeanor around other students, except Lazer, but he didn't consider them friends. It was typical, in his observations, for gamers to maintain an illusion of friendship and still feel closed off from everyone. Well, it depended on type of gamer. MOBA players were surrounded by a community of trolls and cutthroat enemies unless they found a local team of their own. The closest thing Lee had to friends was his executive board.

Sweets lived four doors down from Lee. Visits were confined to club matters and kept short. He knocked and observed the marshmallow drawings on her whiteboard. They must have been made in celebration of a new phone operating system.

"Hey Lee. How was the orientation?" she asked after opening the door.

Lee stayed in the doorway. He had never set foot in her room, because he never had a reason. He slung his backpack off one shoulder and held it across his chest to retrieve the signup sheets.

"We got some new kids for the email list," Lee said, his arm outstretched to offer Sweets the papers.

Someone passing by, most likely Lazer, pushed Lee from behind. He fell forward and the papers fluttered out of his hand. Lee landed flat on his backpack.

"Get the papers, get the papers," Sweets said. She hurried to close the open window before the wind took them.

Lee flashed back to a night spent playing one of the most terrifying games created. He looked up from the floor, "Never say those words."

The sign up sheets landed below the window sill. Sweets gathered them and went to help Lee off the floor. "Oh, sorry," she said and offered him a hand getting up.

He was inside her room. This was the first time he had seen things from the floor. Lee looked up at the sunlight bouncing off the glossy wallposters. Everything seemed to be glowing, including Sweets. The light filtered through the big brown curls of hair and diffused over her cheeks. Lee reached out and took her hand. "Thanks."

They stood there for a moment and stared as if they were witnesses to a spectacular explosion.

"Sure, you're welcome," she said.

Her statement snapped Lee out of the momentary trance. He zipped up his backpack and turned to head out the door.

"Hey Lee," she said.

"Yeah?" he answered, back still turned to her.

"We should do something together sometime," she said and then added, "the whole club, I mean."

"Sure. It might be fun," he said and left.


	3. Video Game Culture Club

_In this installment I try to introduce the idea of Rational Fiction. Something new to experiment with I suppose. There's a bit of character development here on Lee's part._

_I hope to have some more video game sequences in the next installment when we swap back to Nile._

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><p>Lee replayed the encounter with Sweets in his head until the meeting on Wednesday. He knew there was a building romantic tension between them; it was obvious even without a mastery of social interactions. There was the element of mystery present in every sappy romantic comedy, or at least the trailers he'd seen.<p>

Acknowledging the existence of the relationship and acting on it were two different things. Confidence seldom manifested outside of cockiness at their school. MOBA players even made flirting into an aggressive dance similar to poking in an early lane.

Then there was the question of whether he wanted a relationship, if he was attracted to Sweets. She was a nice person, and the image of her bathed in light would flash into his thoughts when Lee least expected it. Lee felt it was safe to assume no one made all of the best possible choices as a teenager.

But what good would romance serve him? Getting involved with another person meant less time for other, more pressing, activities. Lee had to prepare a presentation for his parents and the design team of GRR concerning the direction of the game after patch 2.0. He also had presidential duties to fulfill and exams to pass. His goal was to become a great designer like his parents, creating not only games, but art.

He knew he had to do something after Wednesday's meeting. Lee considered talking to Sweets at whatever community event they planned, but decided procrastinating left more opportunity for something to go awry. He had never rejected someone before.

Video Game Culture and Design club met in Nexus Tower, room 1023, at seven on Wednesday evening. Lee arrived five minutes early to chat with some of the club members before the official start of their meeting. He took a seat in the front at a long table used for panel discussions. A podium stood next to the table for use during lectures or formal discussion.

Lee started the meeting right at seven as a few of the newer students trickled into the room.

"It's great to see so many new faces tonight. We will start off going around the room introducing ourselves and then I'll give everyone a better idea of what goes on in our club," Lee said.

They went around the room stating their name, gamer handle, MOBA of choice, and an interesting fact. Nile, the recruit Lee was most enthusiastic about, had showed up and struggled to think of an interesting fact about himself. Lee maintained a smile through the exercise even though he found it useless. He would remember the names and faces of the new students once they stuck around for at least a month.

Lee gave a short introduction to the club and moved onto the next agenda item: community events. He had given substantial consideration to finding an activity both related to the club and enjoyable for a group.

"For our first club outing, I decided on a visit to the Museum of Retro Gaming. Afterwards we could do dinner somewhere or even host something," Lee said.

A few people nodded. The new kids had no baseline for club activities. They were unaware of the parties put on by the hardcore MOBA clubs and how much the school funded modding club. Video Game Culture and Design got shafted in every area.

"Sweets will send out an email later, or tomorrow, for more information and to gauge interest," Lee said. He moved onto the next agenda topic. "So, any questions before dismissal?"

Everyone was quiet. Some kids were on their tablets in the back; Lee guessed they were squeezing in an ARAM match or something as casual. Then Nile spoke up.

"What inspired you for the design of RUMBLE P4CK?" he asked.

Lee gave a commending nod and smiled. He was used to design questions directed at his parents. There was one blogger who had interviewed him after the release of every one of his goliaths. The lack of coverage Lee received puzzled him despite the huge impact his designs had on GRR.

"Well, it was my parents mostly. My mom taught me to consider every existing rule in a system and then try breaking them when designing. Like, how can you throw a wrench into a game, but keep it running and keep it fun? And my dad is full of energy, and he can channel that into his designs without being too flashy," Lee said. "So I guess I just designed a goliath to counter the range-heavy meta by moving with speed and finesse."

Again, silence.

Lee thought the new kids had just realized how involved he was with GRR. Maybe now his experience with the game would boost the retention levels for the club.

"Any other questions?" he asked.

Five hands shot up. Lee spent the next ten minutes answering questions related to the game's design. He paraphrased a few things he'd heard his parents mention in design meetings. The new kids ate it all up.

He dismissed the club once the questions subsided. The executive board stayed behind, and so did Nile. Lee noticed the guy hanging around in the second row and asked him to wait outside if he wanted to talk more.

Nile obliged and went to wait outside in the hallway.

The executive board discussed logistics for the upcoming outing. The treasurer volunteered his suite for a potluck mixer after the museum. It was more economical than taking fifteen people to a restaurant downtown. Their club had enough funding to cover the tickets for anyone interested, but covering the cost of food would be difficult.

Lee asked Sweets to stay behind once everything settled for the museum excursion. He was shivering and rubbed his hands together. They were getting sweaty. Lee took a deep breath to center his thoughts.

"I wanted to talk about what happened the other day, in your room," Lee said.

"What, when you fell?" she asked.

"Well not that specifically, about afterwards, and what's been going on between us," he started. "It feels like there's some tension between us, romantic tension, and I want to address that."

"You really feel that way?" Sweets asked.

"Yeah, it feels like I'm leading you on. I want to be clear that I don't want to be involved with anyone right now. I'd feel bad because I have so much else going on," he said.

Lee watched her expression change in an instant. He hated how his assumption was correct, and his response crushed her.

Sweets was silent for a few moments.

"I'm sorry you feel that way. But I don't think there's need to be concerned," she said.

"Alright, as long as we're on the same page," he said.

She got up from her seat and gathered her backpack. Sweets headed across the room to leave.

Lee rose from his seat and called out to her before she left. "Remember to send the email tonight." She hurried out in a huff.

Nile sat slumped against the wall in the hallway. He was reading something on his phone, but stopped after Sweets rushed down out of the room with Lee following close after.  
>"Something you wanted to talk about Nile?" Lee asked.<p>

"Is everything okay?" he asked.

Lee pondered the question and wondered if he could provide an answer.


	4. Advanced Warfare

_Shifting back to Nile's point of view for another video game section._

* * *

><p>"Yeah I'm cool, just some club stuff," Lee replied.<p>

Nile guessed Lee didn't feel comfortable enough to share personal issues. He let the subject drop.

"Alright. I wanted to know if you'd be willing to talk about game design more; if you're not too busy."

Lee's face brightened from the distraught expression of a few moments ago. "Dude I love talking about game design. It's kind of why I'm the president of this club."

Nile put his plan into action. He and Lee spent the better part of Wednesday evening discussing the design of GRR. All of the executive positions for the club were filled, but they held elections at the end of each term. A strong relationship with the president meant good advocacy during voting.

Now, he set his sights on securing a spot on the new GRR team. Schools were only allowed one team for MOBAs released within the past year. The North American gaming schools made this decision to prevent larger schools from entering more teams into tournaments. This meant only elite players comprised the competitive scene for new games. Nile needed to practice if he wanted a fighting chance at tryouts. MOBAcademy's coaches proved they were the best by taking teams to finals for years in a row. The school brought in a new coach for the GRR team.

The gaming rooms stayed open late to allow teams to practice outside of class. Architecture at MOBAcademy reflected the school's core mantra: quality over quantity. Three rows of brushed steel desks lined the gaming rooms' concrete floors. Exterior walls were all glass. Their design reduced distractions and kept the focus on gaming. MOBA practice occupied the first two rooms Nile passed; two teams of five shouting commands at each other and a spectator view of the match projected at the front of the room.

He continued down the dim corridor of Elixir Commons Hall. The linoleum floors fluoresced with the light coming in from the courtyard. Nile walked into the third gaming room in the hall and found an open station.

The machinery was serious: dual-screen, bleeding-edge hardware, and a puck. A player makes hand gestures over the puck and those trigger macros in the game. Latency is nonexistent, allowing players to react faster. Using the puck would take some training to feel comfortable. At home, Nile practiced with a keyboard and mouse he took from his old high school.

He sat down at the open station and swiped his ID card over the puck to boot up the computer and load his profile. He took a deep breath to prepare for his first game as a student at MOBAcademy.

Time between booting and queuing up in a solo ranked lobby was four seconds. The ID card stored all of his game credentials.

Nile fumbled through the gesture commands on his right monitor while the next match loaded on his left. Extending certain fingers simulated pressing activated ability keys. The puck could replace the mouse by tapping on the left or right hemisphere to click and rotating to scroll.

Matchmaking finished and started a new session. Nile was near the bottom in selecting his goliath after both teams finished picking bans for the round. RUMBLE P4CK sat unpicked for the first three players.

Nile made it clear in the chat which goliath he wanted to play. Everyone told him to wait, as usual. In lower ranks, players picked whichever goliath they preferred without any regard to other teammates or picks by opponents. Being on a team would make selection easier if it was established beforehand. He sat waiting for the opposing team to make their picks.

His goliath remained open when Nile's turn came around. The final enemy player countered his pick.

Few people chose counters for RUMBLE P4CK, which was part of why Nile chose to play the goliath. Around eighty percent of players preferred to play range with heavy defensive abilities. This guy picked DIZZI, a goliath with snaring abilities and a self-destruct ultimate.

The match started.

Nile bought an upgrade for his melee damage and a nanobot repair pack to restore his shields in lane; the GRR equivalent of a health potion. The puck made buying in the shop easier, but navigating on the minimap required correcting a few mistakes. He took the top lane solo. Nile preferred playing top because RUMBLE P4CK had a favorable matchup in most cases.

DIZZI was his opponent in the lane. He threw down a few traps around minion fights to keep a tight perimeter for Nile. This guy knew what to expect from a RUMBLE P4CK player. Going in for enemy minion kills meant risking an early engagement with DIZZI and a potential ambush by the jungler.

If Nile wanted a spot on varsity, he needed to learn how to beat counter players. The match evolved from playing against DIZZI to playing against himself. Keeping DIZZI guessing could earn him an advantage. Counter players studied the play styles of the goliath they were countering and developed a strategy around the popular builds.

Nile spent his first few minutes of farming thinking up a build DIZZI would never expect. RUMBLE P4CK players purchased items to increase melee damage and speed. He wanted to play off of his goliaths strengths and exploit his opponent's weaknesses. Nile planned to focus on defense and evasion. Avoiding traps meant DIZZI would rely on his other weaker abilities.

One of his teammates came for an ambush at the six minute mark. DIZZI had focused on setting traps to keep Nile blocked from advancing. This left an opening for other players to attack using the alleys between skyscrapers connecting each lane.

The window for ambush would last for a few seconds. Nile pinged his teammate to attack and triggered one of the traps to bait DIZZI.

His opponent took the bait and moved in, flash cannon charging, to stun RUMBLE P4CK. The flash cannon took three seconds to charge and stunned in a cone in front of DIZZI. He would be vulnerable to rifle fire if the ability went off.

Nile clenched his fists. He gave his goliath the command to retreat behind their tower, but the trap slowed him to a crawl. All of his abilities were online if he needed to use one.

His teammate charged out of the fog from the skyscrapers. The goliath's plasma rifle transitioned from blue to green as it drained the health of allied minions. DIZZI noticed the ambush and turned to stun Nile's teammate.

Nile tensed. Giving DIZZI an early kill meant fighting later in the game would be near impossible. He executed the gesture for "Best Fist Forward", but fired it backwards. RUMBLE P4CK moved further from his teammate.

"Dammit," Nile said.

He fumbled with the puck in an effort to stop DIZZI, but it was too late.

The flash cannon fired before the plasma rifle discharged. DIZZI unleashed a volley of shredder hooks to make short work of his teammate's shields.

In his attempt to join the ambush, Nile triggered another trap. He slammed his palm down on the puck.

DIZZI secured the kill on his teammate and moved to finish Nile's helpless goliath. All of his skills were on cooldown, but he had a wave of minions behind him.

Nile issued another command to retreat. He took a deep breath and waited for his goliath to move behind the tower. The kill meant DIZZI had a substantial amount more gold than him.

RUMBLE P4CK made it to the tower. DIZZI focused on hitting the tower shields with his minions while Nile recalled for an evacuation back to base.

"Great work noob."

His teammates tore him apart in the game chat. It looked like they would lose their top turret and a powered up DIZZI meant RUMBLE P4CK would be worthless. They complained about the matchmaking algorithms throwing a pathetic player onto their team.

"First time RUMBLE P4CK?"

Nile seethed while his goliath dashed back to defend the tower.

He wondered how the varsity team players treated each other. In the official tournament videos online they communicated commands and celebrated victories, but what were they like in practices? Plus, the GRR team was brand new. He worried his reactions might get him kicked off of the team, and then dismissed from the school. If he made it onto the team at all.

"I can't blow this," he said. The other kid a few rows up looked back over his shoulder.

Nile saw his opportunity to turn the game around at the nineteen minute mark. His team was ready to surrender once it hit twenty. They were down two towers and four kills. Nile planned to destroy three opposing goliaths and one of their towers. Maybe then his team would reconsider.

DIZZI pushed the last tower in the top lane. Three other opponents headed down the middle and the last was missing.

Nile pinged his team to take care of DIZZI. He charged into the middle lane and activated "Best Fist Forward". The ability connected and he followed up with RUMBLE P4CK's ultimate. One down, two to go.

His opponents reacted with their own ultimates. The first launched waves of radiation causing area of effect damage. The second called in an airstrike with a three second impact countdown.

Nile activated "Fists of Fury" to increase his attack and movement speed. In less than a second he decided to keep pressing forward. The airstrike radius was positioned behind him making an escape deadlier than engagement.

The radiation goliath went down after a few punches and narrow miss from the airstrike. Nile's shields were low, but he continued the charge.

His opponent turned on his jet boosters and started a retreat. There was a long stretch until he would reach the safety of his tower.

Nile pursued, hoping he would catch up once the jets wore off. Another charge and increase to his movement narrowed the gap enough to land a few punches and secure a third kill.

"DEVASTATION!"

At the twenty minute mark his team voted to continue playing. They handled DIZZI and the other two lanes while Nile focused on pushing through the middle. The comeback impressed his teammates who praised him in the chat.

Nile solidified their victory after a grueling hour of gameplay.

He pushed back from the table and stared at the ceiling. The GRR coach gained his notoriety in matches just like those. Of course MOBAs weren't his genre of choice. Brian D. was a premiere FPS player at Video Game High School and enjoyed a short professional career after graduating. Nile read about his transition to coaching and shaky record.

Dean Calhoun took a big chance when she asked Brian to coach the GRR team.


	5. RUSE

A trip to the museum for Nile and the Video Game Culture and Design club.

* * *

><p>Tryouts for the GRR varsity team were the day after Video Game Culture and Design club's trip to the museum. Nile contemplated skipping the outing in order to practice, but failing to join an executive board meant dismissal. Dean Calhoun laid out the requirements for all recruits at MOBAcademy: make the varsity team, join an executive board, and attend every class. Nile scouted the local GRR rankings to gauge his chances of making the team. Ten students signed up to fill five spots. All of them brought experience from playing other MOBAs.<p>

Nile spent an hour pouring over the statistics of his competition. So many veterans signed up to join the GRR team because of the rumored season one prize pool. Nile read in one of the MOBA blogs that the studio behind the game planned to offer exclusive content for sale and pay the proceeds out to the top teams in the first official tournament. Money never influenced Nile's choice of GRR as his declared MOBA, but the incentive attracted professional and amateur players alike from across the globe.

"Reading anything good?" Lee asked. He noticed Nile hunched over a computer in the library. Finding someone on the computer in a library was rare in a school dedicated to video games. The library was more of an archive since it's computers stored several thousands of hours of recorded game-play streams.

The surprise startled Nile and he jolted back in his chair.

Lee laughed, "Sorry, didn't mean to scare you. I passed by on my way to pick up the museum tickets and saw you sitting alone. Thought I might say hey."

"It's cool. I was reading about GRR. Just silly rumors," Nile said.

"Let me guess, the one about the season one prize?" Lee asked. He took a seat next to Nile.

"Yeah. I'm trying to figure out why so many experienced players left their MOBAs to start over in this one."

"An interesting conundrum," Lee said with a smirk.

"Let me guess, you're not going to comment on the game," Nile asked rhetorically.

"Well, I won't comment on anything I didn't design and is unconfirmed."

Nile shrugged; all the more reason to build a stronger relationship with Lee. "Fair enough."

"Anyway, I've got to pick up the tickets before the office closes. See you in a few hours," Lee said as he left.

The line between friendship and exploitation blurred. Nile learned everything about social interactions from school and the virtual world. He saw the world through the lens of a video game: what resources do I have at my disposal and how can I maximize their use to my benefit? Nile perceived people as a means to an end instead of human beings. Life was one grand scheme.

His goal was to become one of the best GRR players and start a professional career after high school. Dean Calhoun laid out the first set of obstacles for him to overcome. Nile banked on a connection with Lee to give him an advantage. However, there was only so much time he could split between class, extracurriculars, and gaming.

He walked through the courtyard to the meeting spot for the museum group. A few of the new club members loitered in the area while waiting for everyone to show up. Lee sat on a bench talking to one of the new girls. He could spend hours talking to people he felt shared the same interests as him.

Nile noticed Lee would glance up at Sweets between making excited gestures during conversation. The tension between them mounted with each passing moment. She stared in Lee's direction, but not quite at him, just enough to set him on edge. Nile could ask Lee about the situation, but doing so presented the risk of seeming intrusive. Nile needed to appear genuine. He could ask Sweets, but that option seemed worse since he knew nothing about her outside of her name. Real friends, or so the internet said, shared their problems and tried to help one another. Nile resolved to do the same.

They walked downtown to the museum. MOBAcademy was integrated into the city of Seattle. School buildings made a miniature campus out of one of the blocks with a few privately-owned businesses interspersed in the layout. A passageway from the courtyard connected the central building to the surrounding city. Over the years, MOBAcademy acquired more property in the bustling downtown area to expand its campus.

Most video game institutions maintained a close distance to urban areas in order to attract more students and a better technological infrastructure. Cities began catering to the burgeoning video game industry-education complex once the leading politicians realized the potential for lucrative partnerships. Special permits were made available for schools to build and encourage development in certain areas. Often times, a mayor would order construction of video game related buildings, such as the museum, to show their respect for the culture.

The reflection of the Museum of Retro Gaming glimmered off the glass of surrounding buildings. Hues of green, pink, and cyan radiated off of the neon pipes outlining select panels of blacked out windows. It was a magnificent testament to the early stages of game development against an otherwise stark Seattle skyline.

Inside, Nile hung towards the back of the group to catch Lee alone while everyone looked over the map in the lobby. The club had not arranged for a guided tour, so people were allowed to wander around as they pleased. Nile followed Lee into the lower hall while the rest of the club went to check out the latest exhibit upstairs: "The Evolution of Platform Gaming".

They walked through an exhibition on Street Fighter and the inception of the fighting genre. Nile stopped in front of a display of arcade sticks.

"Have you ever been here before?" Lee asked once the group split off.

"Nope. This is my first time in Seattle," Nile said.

"Dude," Lee exclaimed and turned Nile towards him by the shoulder, "you've never been to Seattle before?"

"I lived with my mom in Montana. We just never got the chance to get out here, I guess," Nile explained.

"Must've been a tough move for you," Lee said. His hand still rested on Nile's shoulder.

Nile never thought of the move out to Seattle as "tough". His mom understood, or at least appeared to understand, how important the acceptance to MOBAcademy was for him. He doubted his one friend from home even remembered him by now. There was nothing back in Montana for him.

Nile shrugged, "Not really."

Lee peered through the display case at video loops of some early fighting games. Clumps of pixels smashed each other with a limited set of animations.

"I've always found it interesting how most people who play games don't know them beyond pictures on a screen," Lee said.

"What do you mean?" Nile asked.

"Like, the people who made these games sometimes hated each other. There are human stories behind everything on display here," Lee said. He turned and faced Nile.

Video games had always been a form of entertainment for Nile; a means of success when it came to GRR. He knew there were people who saw this as the next great form of art. Nile appreciated the dedication behind creating a game, but he felt their appeal was too narrow and often failed to create a human connection. He figured more game developers than artists had god-complexes when it came to design.

"Uh, I guess," Nile said.

"Sorry, I'm probably getting a little weird. Plus, you've never been part of a game's development so you wouldn't really know," Lee said. He was the only student at school involved in professional design.

Lee made a valid point. Nile was never part of a development or design team. MOBAcademy was his first exposure to the deeper aspects of video game culture. At home, he could only scratch the slimy surface of gaming communities. Here, he had access to people like Lee who knew what went into creating a video game.

"No, no, you make a good point. I don't know how games or made, I only know how to play them," Nile said.

"Well, you play them pretty well," Lee replied.

No one complimented Nile on his skills in GRR. The acceptance letter was recognition of his potential rather than outright praise. Lee's words validated all of Nile's persistence and practice grinding through the ranked queues. Someone else was watching, and possibly rooting, for him.

"Thanks, but I'm not even the top rank, and I still have to try out for the varsity team," Nile said.

"Don't be too hard on yourself dude. Watch those varsity players though; it's tough to find someone real at this school," Lee said. "But you probably already knew that."

Nile felt a ringing in his ears. Lee's last comment hit too close and made him uncomfortable. It was a coincidence since Lee had no way of knowing his true intentions. Nile's best plans were the ones no one ever found out about. For his current scheme to work, he needed Lee to think they were friends up until one of them left the school.

"Good advice," Nile stuttered.

A cluster of kids from the club wandered over into the same exhibition hall. They met up with Nile and Lee and raved about the top floor's display of interactive Tetris. Sweets had given them the full tour of the museum along with commentary.

"Lee," she said in a low voice, "can I talk to you for a second?"

Nile had built up the conversation to a point where he felt comfortable asking about her. This would have been the perfect moment, if she hadn't shown up again. He considered asking Lee outright, but it seemed awkward to open with a personal question. Nile would have to catch him on the walk back or at the potluck later.

"I'll catch you outside, Nile," he said and left to talk with Sweets.


	6. MOBAcademy: Pot Luck

_A visitor surprises Lee at MOBAcademy. Thanks for reading thus far._

* * *

><p>Lee led Sweets to a bench outside of eavesdropping distance from the rest of the group. Both of them avoided making eye contact and maintained a gap on the bench. The concrete seat was cool to the touch.<p>

He looked at her and gave a shrug. Lee couldn't imagine they had anything left to talk about after their meeting earlier in the week. "What's up?"

"It's about what you said, last time," she said.

For the first time since coming to school, Lee's cheerful demeanor faded. His brow furrowed and he pouted his lower lip slightly. "I thought it was clear that I don't want to start anything, with anyone."

"Right. I was going to say that I've just been trying to be your friend. It's hard since you can be so distant at times," she said. Sweets had her own look of concern upon noticing Lee's change in mood. "I never wanted to be more than friends with you."

Lee's expression cleared. "Sure," he said with a smile, "we'll be great friends."

Sweets nodded. "Great, now let's get back to the group."

They headed back to rejoin the group in the museum lobby. Everyone was ready to return to campus of absorbing all of the information available on games from decades ago. The video game industry advanced more with each passing year than some of the other established industries. Revisiting the early developments which built the foundation made current games seem all the more incredible.

Lee chatted with the new students on the walk back to campus about their favorite exhibits. So many of them voiced an interest in game design, but none of them had practical experience. Lee felt alienated at times knowing he had no one to talk to on the same level of knowledge as him on creating games. But he still enjoyed making new friends and sharing his passion.

At the entrance back onto campus, Lee froze in his tracks. Some of the students in his group stopped as well.

"Dad?" he asked.

Theodore Wong had arrived unannounced to visit his son, though it wasn't the first time. He smiled and approached the group. The students were shocked at the surprise visit from one half of the most popular duo in the video game industry.

"Hey son," he said, "and friends."

"What are you doing here?" Lee asked.

"I'm in the city to meet with one of the development teams, and I figured I'd come by to see how your work for 2.0 is coming along," he said.

"Dad," Lee said in a low voice.

Then it dawned on his father: Lee's involvement in the next phase of GRR was being kept a secret. The company, and family, decided things could get hectic if students knew. Gamers thought of information about a major upcoming release before the first ever official tournament as gold. Lee might be in danger if anyone crazy or desperate enough to win at any cost found out.

"You know, your school work," he said in an attempt to brush off the previous remark. "Maybe we should talk in your room."

"You're working on the next release?" Nile asked.

"Of course," Ted replied.

"I was asking Lee. No disrespect, sir."

"Maybe we should all talk about this in my room," Lee said and lead the group inside his residence hall.

Lee knew he could leverage the situation before it became any worse. He had the few minutes during the walk to his room to devise a plan which kept everyone quiet and convinced his dad the development plan was sound. Lee's tendency for perfection caused delays in creating his enhancements for GRR and subsequent presentation. There was three months time of work left to be finished in three weeks.

The twelve members of Video Game Culture and Design club, and his dad, crowded into his room. Lee closed and locked the door. He stepped up on his desk chair to address the group. Everyone stared at him in silence and anticipation.

"So, I'm heading up the design efforts for GRR 2.0 in a few weeks," Lee said. A few whispers flowed through the crowd before they fell silent again. "Absolutely no one else can know about this. I trust you guys, even the new people, and I've got an idea I think everyone will appreciate. I want all of you to be part of my team over these next few weeks. You've all got great ideas, and honestly, I can't do this all by myself."

"Can you really do that, make us part of the team?" Nile asked.

Lee looked at his dad and asked, "can I?"

"Well, I don't see why not," his dad replied.

A few students let out whoops of enthusiasm. The shift in mood from anxious to excited was palpable. It was like when a teacher says they have a big announcement and then inform the students a test is being moved back a week.

A sense of relief tingled in Lee's temples. It felt good to be surrounded by people who shared his passion for creating games. Lee smiled and surveyed the small group crammed in his room. His eyes met his dad's and Lee knew there would be even more to talk about after his announcement.

"Alright everyone, we can talk more about it at the pot luck in a few hours," Lee said and hopped down from his chair.

Once all the students left, Lee sighed and turned to confront his dad.

"You handled that pretty well. I'll have to send an email back home so we can send out the necessary paperwork for our newly contracted team of design consultants," his dad said.

Lee tapped on his lower lip. He looked for a sign that his dad was upset about making such a big decision without giving any warning. Lee still stood by his actions, but things would be difficult if his parents reserved their approval. His dad and mom were still the same incredible people he heard stories about, but now they had a son and business to look after. At the moment, Lee regarded them as the two most important people in his life.

"You're not mad with me?" Lee asked.

His dad laughed. He took Lee by the shoulder and said, "I don't think I can ever be mad with you. Well, unless you do something insane, like sneak into an erotica arcade and get mixed up with gangsters."

Lee noticed his dad staring out into the distance. "Dad?"

"Right. What I mean is, I think you really made the best of a mistake better left unmentioned to your mom."

"Uh, sure. Thanks," Lee said.

"Now, let's see what you've got in the works before I'm late for my meeting."

Lee spent the next half hour showing his dad the planned redesign for GRR 2.0. They discussed a few of the more controversial points and proposed changes to existing goliaths. His dad was impressed with a few of the unorthodox aspects Lee had come up with, but there were a number of elements left unaddressed. Their discussion winded to a close before they lost track of time.

"Well, I'm off. It looks like you're handling things here," his dad said. He hugged Lee and said, "I love you son," before leaving.

"Travel safe," Lee called down the hall after him.

* * *

><p>Lee walked across campus to the suite-style residence hall. Students chose from either corridor or suite style living arrangements. School rules forbid living off-campus for legal and security reasons. The evening air had crispened as the seasons progressed. Lee took a deep breath, the air stinging his lungs, before going inside.<p>

He knocked and waited for Travis, their treasurer, to open up. Lee suspected he would be the first one there, as usual. To him, it felt natural for the club president to arrive before everyone else.

"Hey Lee, I had a feeling it'd be you," Travis greeted him.

They chatted while Travis finished setting things up for the gathering. Of course there were questions about the big announcement from earlier, but Lee dismissed the questions until the next club meeting and all the paperwork was settled. Instead, they talked about their trip to the museum and Dean Calhoun's appointment for the GRR varsity coach. A knock at the door interrupted their conversation.

Nile had arrived, five minutes early. He sat down on the couch next to Lee.

The first few seconds passed in silence. Travis made himself seem busy pouring snacks into bowls and setting out napkins. Nile moved his gaze around the room, taking everything in.

Lee surmised the situation was awkward since neither of them had spoken outside of the club. He wanted everyone to be comfortable with each other, especially now since they would be working together.

"Travis, this is Nile. He's new to the club, recruited here based on performance in GRR," Lee said.

"Nice meeting you," Travis said and they shook hands. "You must be good if they recruited you here."

"Well-" Nile started before Lee interrupted.

"He's trying out for the varsity team tomorrow."

"Good luck then," Travis said. He went over to answer another knock at the door.

The whole club showed up and filled the suite. There was more room than in Lee's room, but seating was sparse.

Lee moved closer to Nile on the couch to make room for the other students. The newer kids started warming up to the older club members. Conversation came easy at first about video games and then split into other topics. One of the upperclassmen told a story about replacing all of the computer lab desktop backgrounds with still images. Someone else talked about which teachers they felt were the best and worst. This sparked some debate and left the newer students to listen.

"Nervous about tomorrow?" Lee asked Nile. Conversation had broken off into smaller groups as everyone got up to get food.

"About tryouts? A little, I guess," Nile answered.

Lee's heartbeat quickened. He tapped a finger on his lower lip. The following few seconds seemed to last for hours. It dawned on Lee how much he liked Nile. Like, really liked him. Seeing Nile in that moment, a real person with good intentions instead of a gamer trying to maintain a cocky facade, made Lee's stomach flutter.

He had felt something for Nile since their first conversation. Few people were as good natured or passionate as Lee was at their school. He had few friends despite being sociable with everyone he met because he never felt a connection. Nile came across as down to earth with a passion to master every aspect of video games. Lee felt an immediate respect for him and desire to foster a strong relationship.

His orientation came as a minor nuance. Lee cleared everything with his parents years ago and asked it remained on the down low until he felt comfortable to express himself at school. Sweets wasn't the first girl who had an interest in him, although she claimed otherwise. Lee knew being attractive and single invited the sorts of situations where he would have to reject girls asking after him.

Now would be a chance to set a lot of things right. He could stop the unnecessary heartbreaks of his female "friends" and be himself. Everything about Nile felt right, and Lee had never been more sure of himself. Maybe it was because he shed the only other secret he had been keeping a few hours earlier that he felt so good about his prospects. He could only hope Nile felt the same way.

Lee reached out and rested his hand on Nile's thigh. He look straight into his eyes and smiled.

"Dude, I believe in you. You'll do great."


End file.
